Someone Left Behind
by Nikki-kd
Summary: Kenshin's life was marked with murders, losses... that was enough to make him leave something precious behind...
1. The first encounter

**Disclaimer**: Nope... Rurouni Kenshin does not belong to me... surprise surprise…

A/N: Well… this is my first ff … and well… you get the picture =/ …

So please, consider that and read it with luuuuuv, care, and an extreeeeeemely *I mean EXTREEMELY* open mind… .

Please review… anything helps  =P

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**Chapter 1**

Sano walked down the street, whistling a cheerful tune, contemplating the feeling of having a satisfied stomach as he left the Akabeko, oblivious to the increase of his debt to the restaurant.

            Spotting a red headed figure ahead, he quickened his pace towards his friend. Noticing a few slight changes on the rurouni's usual look, Sano was ready to joke around. "Oi, Kenshin!" he called out, "What happened to your l-o-v-e-l-y pink gi? Green does work better for you, but wearing your hair down reeeeeally doesn't…" Upon being totally ignored, Sano closed the distance between them and called out once more, "Hey… are you ignoring me? Dude, I was just joking… HEY KENSHIN!"

            Coming to a halt at the sound of that name, the red head turned around briskly, revealing a fair female face with large violet eyes, clearly shocked at what she had heard.

"What… what did you call me…?" she asked, in a barely audible whisper.

"Oh! Oops… I'm sorry; I've mistaken you for someone I know… Ah well, easy mistake to make considering your height and hair…" he said with a confused frown, amazed at the resemblance and apparently not having heard her question. Noticing the girl staring at him, Sano felt a little awkward and decided to resume the conversation and head to the Dojo where the 'real' Kenshin should be. Suddenly feeling an urge to tell him exactly what he had just seen.

"Er… okay, so… sorry about that. I'd better get going…"

            He turned on his feet and left for the Dojo. The girl, rooted to the spot, watched him walk away, not saying another word and lost in her own thoughts.

            Still rather puzzled from what he had seen, Sano came to the conclusion that a female version of Kenshin was pretty attractive. Finding the thought somewhat disturbing, Sano shook it off laughing to himself.

Later on, at the Kamiya Dojo:

"… seriously Kenshin. I was spooked! The girl was the very image of you." Sano said, sitting down on the front porch of the Dojo while Kenshin hung up the freshly cleaned clothes.

            He seemed to be thinking hard about what Sano had just told him, but didn't really say anything.

"Although… if you think about it, it shouldn't be all that surprising really… considering your 'manly' look… not to mention hobbies…" he added with sarcasm and a smirk.

            Kenshin simply raised a brow at him in an annoyed expression, which was enough to warn Sano that he was walking on thiiiiiiin, thin ice. Catching that, he thought it better to change the course of things with another *smart* joke.

"Man, are you sure you ain't got some lost relatives wondering around Japan?"

            He lost his smile when he saw that instead of responding, Kenshin dropped his glare at him and seemed lost in thoughts once more.

            At that, Kaoru came from the kitchen looking for Yahiko. "Have you guys seen Yahiko? I've got lunch almost ready and still no sign of him …"

*…no wonder…* thought Sano.

"Oh… aaaahhh that's too bad. I was hoping to catch some lunch here, but since YOU made it… for my stomach's sake, I ain't gonna risk it…" he said, sounding disappointed.

            Kaoru's face went five different shades of red with fury. Fuming, she screamed at him, grabbing and shaking his neck, "WHY-YOU-GOODFORNOTHING-FREELOADED-BUM-" 

"Er… Kaoru-Dono…" said Kenshin, in a timid, 'not-so-audible' voice, noticing a thick, black smoke coming from the kitchen.

"IF IT WASN'T ENOUGH THAT YOU COME IN HERE AND EAT FOR FREE WHENEVER YOU FEEL LIKE"

"… Kaoru-Dono…"

"AND INSULTED MY OH-SO-PERFECT COOKING-"

"… Kao-"

"YOU JUST HAD A FREE MEAL FROM TAE!"

"…Kaoru-Dono…"

"SO DON'T YOU EXPECT OR EVEN THINK FOR A MOMENT-"

"…Ka-"

"THAT YOU WILL BE GETTING A SINGLE GRAIN OF RICE FROM ME!!!"

"… no… he wont…" came Kenshin's voice. 

"Huh…? Why are you so sure?" She asked him, finally letting go of Sano's neck and staring at him.

            Kenshin, eyes hid behind his red bangs, lifting a single finger and pointing towards the kitchen, his head hanging down, explained in a painful voice, "Because  no grain of rice could make it through that…" She looked back and squeaked, running at top speed into the smoke-filled kitchen.

"Nonononononononoooooo….. not agaaaaain…" came her whining voice from inside.

"Like I said, I'll not risk it." said Sano in a casual tone, standing up and walking towards the gate. "Good luck taking Jou-chan and the brat to the Akabeko my friend… I hope you have money cause, you know… Tae's probably still a bit worked up about all the 'eating-and-not-paying' thing…" and without looking back, he left.

            Taking in what Sano said last… Kenshin blinked hard… "Oro????"

Later that night, in the Akabeko:

            As Kenshin, Kaoru and Yahiko entered the restaurant, they spotted a new waitress, she had her back to them, serving another family. They noticed her long, shinny red hair falling down to the small of her back. As the girl turned around they gasped in surprise. With a loud CRASH, the new waitress lost her grip on the tray and it fell to the ground, her eyes wide, staring straight into Kenshin's, who seemed equally hypnotized.

"Katsumi! What happened?? Oh dear… look at this mess.." came Tae's voice. Snapping back to reality, the girl got down on her knees and picked up the pieces of china from the ground, clearly troubled.

"I'm sorry Tae! I-I don't know what happened… I'm sorry, it'll be cleaned up in a second!" with that, she stood up ad took the shattered pieces back into the kitchen so fast that it seemed as if her life depended on it.

"Kaoru! Hey guys! It's been a while since you came here!" Tae greeted as she turned to them. Kaoru could only ask, "Tae, who was that?" Tae, noticing they're awed expressions, explained with a soft smile: "Katsumi… she came in just today, looking for a job. She's a very good girl, I was amazed at her dropping the tray just like that… but I guess it was just a lapse." The she turned to Kenshin, "She reminds me a lot of you when you first came here, Kenshin…"

"Wonder where you got THAT from…" snorted Yahiko sarcastically, only to smacked over the head by Kaoru.

            But Kenshin did not answer, only looked at the direction Katsumi had gone.

*What's wrong with you???* Katsumi thought to herself, sat outside of the restaurant with both hands on her head. *You've thought of this your whole life and now that you've found him you completely freak out!* "Baka, baka BAKA!", she repeated to herself, pounding her fists on her forehead.

            Too nervous to get up, she just remained on that spot until it was time to clean up the place and shut down.

A/N: yeah… a little short… but its kind of an introduction to things =P … 


	2. A painful doubt

**Disclaimer:**  I do not own Rurouni Kenshin, that I don't.

A/N: Thanks everyone for your reviews!!! ^_^x They made me really happy! Well… the chapter did have loads of mistakes =P lol … but hey… I'm trying lol. Well… on with the chapter \(^_^x)/

**Chapter 2**

"Oh no…..… we're out of tofu!" Tae said, looking frantically around the kitchen of the Akabeko. It was almost time to open the restaurant and she still hadn't started to cook anything. Tsubame was already there and only too busy giving the place a last minute 'make-up'.

"Good morning Tae!" came Katsumi's cheerful voice as she entered through the back door. But before she could come in, Tae had shoved some money on her hand and turned her around, pushing her back outside. "Yes-good-morning-dear-We-need-some-tofu-pronto-Go-get-it-now-ok? Thankyou-GOGOGO!!!" she said nervously. "And get rid of that thing before you come back in!!!" she called out to the girl as she ran off, referring to the sword she insisted on carrying around. "Hmpf… that thing's still gonna scare off the customers……." she added to herself as she turned back inside.

Katsumi trotted up to the store. The place was crowded and a long line of people were waiting to be attended. *oh…….… perfect..…* she thought to herself as she got in the line herself. When it was finally her turn, she asked the man on the counter for the tofu. As he walked back with her order, she reached inside her pockets for the money…….… only to find……….. *It's empty????????* she thought, patting around her clothes desperately. 

"What's the matter missy?" the man asked, a suspicious look on his face.

"I… I can't find the money……….…" she murmured. 

"Riiiight……….… here's what you do………" he started, on a soft tone. "Get out of my store! No money, no tofu!" he finished harshly.

"But sir! I……… you don't understand………. I had the money right here, I swear………" she pleaded, still searching for the lost money. *Oh my, Tae's going to KILL me!*

"Make that two sir." came a soft, friendly voice from behind her as she saw a hand stretched out with money enough to pay for both of them.

"You'll pay for the girl's order?" the man asked. "Yes." The stranger answered.

            Katsumi turned back to thank the stranger for his kindness. " Shin – Ken – I mean… thank you." She  stuttered, as she found Kenshin was the so kind stranger paying for her tofu. He smiled at her and gave a little nod. The man handed him the orders and they walked out of the store together.

            Katsumi was very nervous and Kenshin could tell. In order to make things less awkward, he decided to brake the ice, "Here, let me help you with that." He said, taking the package from her hands. "Thank you, but I'm really in a hurry. I got to rush back to the….…" 

"Akabeko?" He cut through.

"Yes. We need this back before we open up."

"It's ok, I'll walk you there." The said politely, smiling his rurouni smile.

            Katsumi didn't know what to say, she was totally lost for words. *Say something you baka! Tell him who you are!* came that little voice from the back of her head. *Grrrr……… what's wrong with me????? Why is this so HARD???*

"I'm sorry, we haven't been introduced…….. I am Ken-" 

"I know who you are….…" she interrupted almost with a whisper. Not genuinely surprised, Kenshin asked, "Oh……. you do?"

"Yes…..…" she answered, looking down at her feet.

"And who are you, may I ask?" he asked softly.

"Katsumi." She said simply as they arrived at the Akabeko.

"Katsumi............?"

"Yes, Katsumi." se said shortly, refusing to reveal her last name. She took the tofu from Kenshin a bit rougher then she meant to do and added, "Thank you for everything Kenshin. I'll explain what happened to Tae and make sure you get you money back.", still looking down.

            Kenshin looked at her fixatedly, his expression serious. "Don't worry about that. It was nothing."

            She looked up at him and he saw that her eyes had a rather sad expression, which he found that shook him greatly inside. She smiled briefly, a smile that didn't really reach her eyes, and entered the restaurant, leaving him with a greater suspicion then he had had the last time he saw her.

            Still, he wanted to be sure, he wanted to run inside and shake the answer out of her! The pain of the doubt and uneasiness was corroding him inside like he never thought it would. 

            He remembered how he had received the news a couple of years before he had left his master. Hiko himself had given it to him. A news that moved him immensely, that left him no choice but to ignore it.

            A sister. He had thought his mother dead for all that time, only to find – several years later – that she had survived and given birth to a little girl, dying shortly afterwards. It had made him so happy to know that he still had a family left! A happiness that didn't last very long. It finally hit him: he couldn't allow that child to live a life like his. A hard life, indeed, even though he had no idea that it would become harder then ever in two years time.   

            But no. He couldn't just burst in there and make her talk. He could see that life had had its blows on her, and that she was nervous and just as uncertain as him. He had to give her time. 

            With a sigh, he started for the Dojo, shooting a last look inside the restaurant's window, where Katsumi stood, explaining to Tae why she had taken so long.

            Tae, stressed as she was due to the lateness of things, brushed away Katsumi's explanation with a "Yeah, ok……. whatever." And she rushed to get on with the cooking. She then turned around at her, "And for Kami's sake, get rid of that thing!!!" she yelled.

            Katsumi flinched at that and apologized with a smile, leaning her sword on the corner of the kitchen. She then made it for the front doors of the restaurant and opened them, welcoming the first customers inside. She took they're orders walked back into the kitchen. As Tae got the food ready for her, Katsumi looked out of the window, totally lost in thoughts.

*Does he know who I am? If he did……… why didn't he say anything? Or……..  am I thankful that he hasn't? Damn….. why am I so confused? After all I've been through to find him, this should be easy! But…… after seeing him here that day, with a new family…….. HIS family. He seemed so happy with the life he's finally found. I couldn't possibly interfere with that……. I couldn't ruin it for him…….. after all, everything I touch gets ruined……*

"Hellooooo… Earth to Katsumi!" Tae's voice invaded her thoughts and brought her back to reality.

"Huh? What?" 

            Tae chuckled at how easy the girl could shut down everything and travel on her own mind. "The order from that first family is ready." She repeated.

"OOoooh! Thanks!" she took the tray and left the kitchen once more. 

"Is she ok?" came Tsubame's timid little voice. Tae smiled down at her and said, "Yes, Tsubame. She'll be ok. I think she's just a little lost. She came from far away you know……. It must be all too new for her. But I'm sure she will fit in soon enough."

A/N: Well… um… yeah... some things were clearly changed from the actual RK story… (yes, I'm talking about the mother bit) but… there couldn't be a sister without the mother… so… meh… it's a FANFIC after all.. xD

Please review ^_^ anything helps, just be honest, so I know what should be changed or improved ; ) Thanx!! 


	3. Kaoru gets jealous

**Disclaimer:** As much as I wanted... Rurouni Kenshin does not belong to me...

A/N: Oh my...... I am soooo soooooooooo sorry for not updating in such a loooooooong time!!!!! . Please please please forgive me... ó.ò I've been so busy... I travelled in Carnaval, then university started... then my pc broke down =S oi...

Anyways, I promisse to update more quickly now ^_^x I'll do the best I can at least... 9.9

Thanx again for the great reviews \(^-^x)/ And, mi dushi... thank you so much for taking your time to read this ;___; it means a lot to me!!!

And well... on with the chappie xD

Chapter 3 

Kenshin walked into the Dojo a little later then he expected. He had been so caught up on his thoughts that he hardly saw where he was going... only to find that he had gone far passed the Dojo gates.

As he enterred, he found himself face to face with a worried face; Kaoru's. Comming into a halt in front of her, Kenshin blinked in a somewhat puzzled manner.

"Is everything alright, Kaoru-Dono?" he asked.

"Is everything alright? 'Is everything alright?' he says... WHATS WRONG WITH YOU??? YOU LEAVE FOR THE SIMPLE TASK OF BUYING TOFU AND IT TAKES YOU TWO HOURS??? WHAT TOOK YOU?" she exploded, clearly he had scared her out of her wits by taking so long.

"Uuh... I.... Forgive me Kaoru-Dono... I didn't mean to worry you like that..." he appologized, looking down at his feet.

            Kaoru realized she had made him feel really guilty, which was enough to soften her. She frowned and shook her hand i the air, as if waving the situation away.

"Aaah nevermind! I'm just glad you're back. You got the tofu, right?"

"Yes, right here." He smilled, holding the package up. "Again, I appologize for taking so long. You see, I ran into Katsumi at the shop – "

"Katsumi?? The red-haired girl that's been working for Tae?" she asked, her eyes wide as she shot him a startled look. Amazed at her reaction, Kenshin tilted his head sideways and went on with his explanation, "Er... yes, her. Well, she had lost her money so I helped her out, she seemed really worried... after all, it WAS Tae's money..."

"You...... you.... you paid for the girl's order...? she asked, on a dangerous tone Kenshin knew only too well.

"Well, yes I – " he began.

"You paid for ANOTHER girl's order with MY money???????" she yelled, fumming.

"Er... Kaoru-Dono... calm down... she needed... Kaoru? You... you are going a little red on the face... that can't be too good..." he said, stepping away slowly. 

            Knowing her only too well, he ran off to the kitchen without another word, leaving the enfuriated Kaoru on the gates.

"Grrrrrrrrrrrrr... KENSHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Later on that day, Sano stopped by the Dojo as usual. Obviously hoping to get a free meal, or a simple left over from breakfast. He spotted a rather distressed Kaoru at the front porch steps, she seemed very sad and was looking down at her toes, as if they were the most interesting things ever.

Sano gave a deep sigh and rolled his eyes as he sat down beside her. "Come on, spill it out. What happened this time?" he asked, knowing exactly where this was going.

            Kaoru simply looked up at him and briskly turned her face from him again. "Its nothing... why don't you just go and ask your FRIEND for the left overs from breakfast?" 

"As much as I want to, I couldn't live with the guilt of leaving this sorry creature here like this..." he said, placing his arm around her and smilling sweetly at her. She looked back at him and leaned her head against his shoulder and asked in what she thought was a 'casual tone'.

"Sano, what do you think of Katsumi?"

            Clearly surprised at her question, Sano didn't quite understand what she meant. "Er, I dunno. I guess she's ok..."

"I mean, do you think she's pretty? Do you think you could.... er... say.... fall for her...?

            Sano frowned at the question, *** **what on earth is she getting at??? * 

"Well, I... pffff, I dunno. I guess she's pretty... but – "

"Do you think 'Kenshin' could fall for her?" she interrupted.

            Sano chuckled at this. * why did I not see this comming? * Kaoru scowled at him for laughing at her and blushed intensely.

"Kaoru, listen... " he began, still amused by her way of thinking. "I think you got the whole thing wrong. You should know better than to think Kenshin would even look at someone else."

"But... but... the girl is so exotic, they seem perfect together..." she said, quite unsure of what she was saying.

"Perfect together??? Hahaha, Kaoru you can't be serious!" He laughed. Kaoru felt a little better at that. Maybe she was being paranoid... there was no sense in being jealous of a girl that they hardly knew.

"Well, I guess you're right..."

"Of course I am! Besides..." he started, not letting his chance to tease her slip away. " you know YOU are perfect for him... he could never cope with a very pretty girl..."

            At that, Kaoru jumped away from him and punched him on the head as strong as she could. He quickly got to his feet and stormed away, laughing his head off. She reached for her boken (known to appear magically whenever Kaoru nedded it ) and ran after him, screaming at the top of her lungs.

            Kenshin looked up at the clothes he had just finnishing hanging with a satisfied look on his face. He smilled to himself as he took in the nice scent of freshly cleaned laundry.

            At that moment, an exasperated Sano came running right onto him, throughing them both into the water where Kenshin had washed the clothes win a loud 'splash'. 

"Oro..." went the swirly eyed Kenshin as Sano got up, not even noticing him.

            They could see Kaoru comming in the distance, and as she came closer Sano grabbed a white shirt from the string and through it straight on to her face, but she ducked and it feel to the muddy floor.

"AGH!" Squeaked Kenshin, his arm stretched out as if trying to hold the piece of clothe before it went to the ground.

            As Kaoru stomped closer and closer, Sano kept snatching clothes from the string and throughing at her. Kenshin flinched as each clothe fell to the ground, as if a little piece of his heart was being torn out.

"HA! Take THAT! And THAT!" yelled Sano, obviously having loads of fun with the whole situation. Kaoru simply grabbed the clothes being thrown at her and tossed them to the floor.

            Kenshin's eyes filled with water, he was about to weep when he finnaly decided to take action.

"STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP" he yelled, causing everyone to freeze at the spot. He walked up to them, scowling, and picked up the clothes from the ground. Walking away, he shot them one last angry look and stomped away, mumbling to himself.

            He walked alone to the front porch and began to wash the clothes all over again. Still mumbling and cursing under his breath. That moment, someone knocked at the gates. It was a rather silent knock, a 'shy' knock.

            Kenshin sighed and let go of the clothes, which sank into the water. He walked up to the gates and opened it. Katsumi was standing outside. She looked at Kenshin and saw his wet figure. Without even changing her expression, she said, "Maybe I should come back when it's a better time..."

"Oro?" said Kenshin, looking down at his wet clothes. He looked back at her, blushing and said with a crooked smile, "Aaah... oh don't worry. Please come on in."

A/N: Well, here it is... I'll try to upload the next chapter still today... hope you liked it... =) don't forget to leave ur review, pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease... its really important ^_^x


	4. The silver chain

**Disclamer:** let me guess...... Rurouni Kenshin is not mine? ¬ ¬

A/N: Well, this chappie wasn't in yesterday... but here it is today =P please take a lil minute to review it ;_____; any suggestions, critics, ideas are very very very welcome ^_^x !!!

Dianinha, thanx for always checking my chappies out! Really!!!

Oh, and I'll be sure to check out the stories of all you people that places reviews signed in! (^-^x) thanx again!

Chapter 4 

Katsumi walked in, passed Kenshin and waited as he closed the gate once more. He looked back at her and smiled sweetly, doing his best to make her feel welcome. She briefly smiled back, that same smile that never reached her eyes, and turned her gaze to the ground once more. There was an awkward moment of silence.

"Is something wrong?" he finnally asked, braking the silence and looking down into her eyes.

"No, sorry." She said, smilling up at him in an attempt to show that everything was really alright. "Tae gave me a moment off and I just...... I thought..... I should come here and thank you..... you know, for this morning's incident..." she stuttered.

            Kenshin smiled his famous rurouni smile, "You shouldn't have worried. I told you it was nothing..." he said as they walked to the front porch and set down side by side on the steps.

"I know, but I had to. I want to pay you back for the tofu... but, you see... I don't really have any money of my own yet." She explained.

"Oh, noooo no, I couldn't possibly – " he began, but she interrupted him, putting her hand up.

"So..." she went on. At that, she reached for the back of her neck and pulled out a delicate silver chain with a moon hanging from it. "I want you to take this."

"Er... I'm honoured, trully... but....... I really don't it'll look very good on me..." he said with a sweatdrop and a croocked smile.

"Please take it, it is important. This small chain was my mothers." She added, looking straight into his eyes so that he caught the importance of it.

            The information really did get to him, as if he was punched on the face. He looked back at her and struggled for words.

"I... I can't. A piece of tofu is just not worth a piece of jewelry such as this, one that means so much to you."

"No, its not..... but your actions were. And I believe.... that it does belong to you, as much as it does to me." She said, and this time she smiled at him, a genuine smile, a smile that came from inside.

            He looked at her and thought her smile to be the most generous, sweet, familiar smile he had ever seen. It felt as if he knew her his whole life, as if he was looking down at himself when he wasn't yet corrupted or committed all those murders.

            He wanted to hold her, to protect her and be there for her like he had never been before. He smiled back at her, but he was really smiling to hmself; he was finnally sure of who she was.

            After such an intense moment, Katsumi and Kenshin seemed to have completely broken the ice. Even so, she still wouldn't say who she really was and he wasn't about to force her to do it. He knew the time would come.

"Would you please stay for lunch Miss Katsumi?" he asked her.

            She looked at him for a moment, he saw her going red around the ears. Finnally, she burst out laughing as if he had just said the funniest thing ever.

"Oro???" he blinked.

"Your not SERIOUSLY calling me 'Miss" are you?????? Hahahahahahaha" 

"Er.... I.... its just a matter of respect Miss Katsumi.... I can't really help it...." he said, blushing and scratching the back of his head.

"Well.... don't do it." She said, still giggling.

"I'll try, but its only appropriate you know..." he said blushing and looking up at the tree leaves as if fascinated by them.

            At that she patted him on the shoulder. "We really don't need that kind of formality between us Kenshin..."

            As if in queue, Kaoru had walked out and heard that one last sentence from Katsumi, which was enough to make her jump into conclusions. She closed her eyes tightly and started counting up to ten in her head. Kenshin and Katsumi obviously sensed her there and looked back at her.

"Oh hello Kaoru!" Katsumi greeted, unnaware that in Kaoru's mind, she had her neck tied up to a tree.

"Good afternoon Katsumi." She said in a strangely, unnatural sweet voice. 

"Miss Katsumi will be joining us for lunch Kaoru-Dono. So I should probably get on with it." Kenshin said smiling. Katsumi rolled her eyes at the how rediculous the word 'Miss' sounded before her name.

            As Kenshin stood up, Kaoru put her hand on his shoulder urging him to stop. "No, Kenshin. Don't bother. IIIIIIIIIII will be making lunch today." She said with a wicked grin Kenshin had never thought to see upon her face. "Er, ok..." he said slowly, looking at her with a bewildered look on his face.

"Welcome to the Dojo Katsumi, I hope you enjoy lunch." She finnished and turned on her heals, back inside and on to the kitchen.

"Er.... uh....hmmmm... should I be worried right now?" Katsumi asked, still looking down the corridor Kaoru had gone.

"Oooooh no... don't worry." Kenshin said, more to himself then to the girl, trying and failing to convince them both.

            Sano came by right on time for lunch. He saw Kenshin and Katsumi walking around the garden, tottally engaged in conversation. He walked up to them with a wide grin upon his face. "Oi, Kenshin!" He called out, waving his hand and trotting up to them. He came to a halt before them and looked down at Katsumi, wearing his most galant face.

"How are you Katsumi?" he asked her.

"I'm fine, thank you. Er... I'm sorry but... do  I know you?" she asked him. Sano fell to the floor anime stile.

"This is a friend of ours Miss Katsumi, Sanosuke Sagara." Kenshin explained.

"But for you, I'm just Sano..." He said taking her hand. She giggled at that and said, "Well, pleased to meet you 'Sano'."

            Kenshin arched a brow at his friend with a not-at-all-pleased look. Sano cought that and straighted up casually. "So, what brings you to the Dojo?" he asked her.

"Oh, I just stopped by to thank Kenshin for helping me this morning." She explained.

"Aaah, I heard all about THAT story..." he said, placing his hands on his pockets.

"Aaaand she is joining us for lunch... you know... she was 'invited'." Added Kenshin. Sano looked at him with an appalled look. "HEY! What's THAT supposed to mean???" Sano shot back.

"Take a wild guess..." Kenshin rolled his eyes.

"Uhmmm... isn't that Kaoru calling us?" Katsumi interrupted, trying to avoid the fight that was certainly comming up. Sano ignored Kenshin's glare and put his arms around Katsumi's shoulder. "Well little lady... I hope you have a strong stomach. But if the worst should happen, you can always count on Sano here to take care of you..."

            Kenshin had a hard time controlling his temper at that point, but decided on telling himself that Katsumi would know better then to fall for the street fighter's small talk and followed them into the house.

            They were all sitting down around the table, with the exeption of Yahiko who had gone to the Akabeko to have lunch with Tsubame.

            Katsumi was looking down at her plate, the food seemed to have a greenish, pale colour compaired with everyone else's. Kaoru was watching her closely with that same wicked smile on her face, urging her to eat every now and then. Katsumi looked up at Kenshin as if crying for help but he was too busy watching Sano trying to impress her every second. 

            In a desperate attempt to get out of there alive, Katsumi left the table with the excuse of going to get some more water. Sano, with the excuse that she wouldn't know were to find everything, followed her into the kitchen. Kenshin saw that Kaoru was too busy trying to listen to them and without her noticing, he swapped Katsumi's plate with Sano's.

            The two teenagers walked back in carrying their glasses of water and sat back down. Katsumi noticed the change on the food's colour and decided to try it. True, it wasn't the best she ever had, (in fact, it was close to the worst) but at least it didn't taste deadly. Sano seemed to have noticed the change on his food as well. He looked up and saw Kenshin grinning sarcastically at him and looked back at his plate.

"Wont you eat your lunch Sano? I'm sure that Kaoru-Dono has put a lot of effort on preparing it for us..." he said, faking a sweet tone.

"I..... I don't wanna....." he said quietly, still looking down at the weird coloured food.

"Come on now, don't be rude..." Kenshin insisted.

"Thanks but... I'm not that hungry anymore..." he said, pushing the plate away.

"EAT!" Kenshin yelled, banging his fist on the table, causing everyone to to jump on their seats.

"Yes sir yes sir yes sir yes!" Sano said reppeatedly as he glomped down the food as fast as he could.

"Thats a good lad..." he said, his grin back upon his face.

            That afternoon Katsumi was about to leave the Dojo. She thanked Kaoru for the meal and said goodbye to Sano. He was about to ask to walk her back to the Akabeko, but a look at Kenshin's face was enough to convince him otherwise.

            Katsumi and Kenshin walked to the gate were they stood for a moment. Kenshin sensed that she wanted to say something, and he thought he knew exactly what it was.

"Kenshin... I.... there's something that..... um...." she stuttered.

"What is it Miss Katsumi?" he asked.

"That's it! Please don't call me like that, it's weird." Kenshin fell down anime stile. "Oroo..."

"Heh, thanks for everything, but I really have to go now. Bye!" She said as she walked away. Kenshin watched her go for a while and smiled to himself. Could life get any better? He lived with the most loving friends, a woman that he loved deeply, and now.... he had found the one family member that he had left. It was so good that it scared him.

* I can only hope never to wake up from this dream... * 

            He closed the gates behind him and walked back inside.

A/N: Well... I know, Kenshin is a bit OOC here =P but meh.... its a FAN FICTION isn't it xD hehehe...

Please leave your review! ^_^


	5. Brother Instincts

**Disclaimer:** Runouni Kenshin is mine. Runouni Kenshin is mine. Runouni Kenshin is mine. Runouni Kenshin is mine. Runouni Kenshin is mine......... (maybe...... If I keep telling myself that....... it might actually come true.....) Runouni Kenshin is mine. Runouni Kenshin is mine.

A/N: OMG!!!! I've been waiting for na opportunity to write the rest of this story for sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo long!!!!!!!! I'm so so sorry...

By the way........ I'm re-writting this 5th chapter. I think I went a little tooo far with Kenshin's OOCness, so I'm doing it again....... I hope I'm not toooo over the top this time --. Please R&R......... I could use sum help.... suggestions.... Oh! And please ignore spelling mistakes xD hehe

Chapter 5 

Despite all of the good things happening around him, Kenshin was a bit put off with Kaoru's attitude towards him (and everyone else really). She was grumpier then ever and potentially dangerous to anyone who dared to stand on her way. And even though Kenshin acted clueless, he knew Katsumi was the real reason.

Maybe...... I could tell her who Katsumi really is........ after all, there's no real reason to keep it a secret from HER. Kenshin thought as he walked up and down the garden, lost inside his own little mind as usual.

I bet she'd be happy to hear about it......... but.... He stopped dead on his tracks and scratched the top of his head. I'm sure she'll do everything for me to go talk to Katsumi and just get this over with......... which is not aaaaall bad, but Its quite obvious that she is not tottally ready to reveal her true self to me. Come to think of it, neither of us seem to be....... I think I'll just -

"GAAAAAAAAAAH! Oro??" said the swirly eyed samuray as he layed on the ground with a huge bump on his head. Yahiko flat on his back on top of him.

"BUSU!!!! No wonder no one wants to stay with you!!!!!!!! With a temper like that and a racoon face, there's nothing left to save you!!!!!!!!!" Yahiko screamed into the kitchen.

"WHY YOU! GRRRRRRRRRRRRR!" Out came Kaoru after him, folding up her sleeves....... Yahiko got up in one quick movement and ran for his life.

"RUUUUN KENSHIN!"

"Oro??? But I didn't do anything....." he said, innocently as he rubbed the painfull bump on his head.

"I don't think that will make much diff-e-r-eeeeee-n-c-e...." He called from a signifficant distance.

"Good point!" He said (more to himself) as he leaped to his feet and dashed away just as Kaoru was catching up on him.

Walking back from the Akabeko to the small shack Katsumi was staying at (which was all she could afford), she sensed a strong and powerful presence around. She paused and listened carefully. It was a very dark night and the streets were deserted.

Still, it didn't take much concentration to find out who it was that was wondering around the streets at that night. In the distance, she spotted no other than Sano, stumbling up the street with a bottle of sake on one hand, the other one was waving around..... in an unsuccessful attempt to accompany the 'rythm' of whatever it was he was trying to sing.

"Sano??? Sano what are you – Oh my god!" She cried as she ran towards him when he swayed threateningly, almost throwing himself face first on the grownd.

"Sano, SANO! Look at me. What were you doing untill this time?" Besides filling your face with that stuff, of course She said as she tried to get a hold of him and keep him on his feet.

Sano looked up and tried to focus on the person holding him. Smilling (somewhat ridiculously) as he recognised Katsumi, he pointed at her and said:

"Heeeeeeeey.................... whaz are yoooou zoing ouz atz zis tzime????"

"Aw, nevermind. Can you get home on your own??? Can you walk?"

"You knoooooow, ze streetz iz dzangerousz zis tzime....." he said, tottally oblivious to her questions and concern. She sighed, a little sweatdrop on her head for frustration.

"Come on. I'm taking you home. Show me were you live. Sano...? SANO! Focus! Show me were your house is!"

"Mmmmmkay.......... both ofv you???"

"Both....... ? There's just me here Sano." ¬ ¬U

"No zere's notz........ zere's tzwo.... Your tzwin's right zere bezide you......."

"No Sano, just little old me here. Only one."

"Tzwwwwwwwo! Zere are tzwoooo!"

"One sano...." sigh

"Humpf...... I ffffffffink you're drunk."

Hanging the freshly cleaned laundry on the next morning, Kenshin greeted Sano as he walked into the dojo, clearly facing a violent hangover.

"Gambling and drinking late last night again Sano?" he asked, smilling.

"Dead on." He answered as he sat on the front porch. Massaging the sides of his head.

"Man, you wont believe who spent the night at my place."

Not exaaactly curious about the person, Kenshin decided to go along with the conversation since there wasn't really any way out.

"Mm?" he cooperated, as he hanged another peace of cloth.

"Our new little friend – Katsumi."

At that, Kenshin froze with the piece of clothe still cluched on his hands. He closed his eyes, triyng to absorb the information. Eyes still closed, he tilted his head a little and decided to double check.

"I – I'm sorry.... what?"

"Katsumi." He repeated, not quite understanding Kenshin's reaction. He shook his head in denial, eyes still closed.

"Im sorry................ WHAT?????????" at this point, the cloth in his hands was being so severly stretched and twisted that it was just a second away from becoming shreds.

"Er................ Kaaa........... Katsu?" Sano attempted. No use.

"Did you just say that........... that Katsumi......... that you and Katsumi......... that she.....?" Kenshin's eyes, now open, had an amber glow to it and that told Sano that he was in VEEEEEEEEEEEERY serious trouble.

"Wait, Kenshin..... buddy....... pal......... nothing happened.... I don't really know what the catch is here, but I assure you nothing happened! I was just dead drunk and she looked after me. That's all..."

He noticed that the dangerous glow on his friend's eyes had gone, but he still looked faaaar too angry.

"So....... you let the girl spend her entire night cleaning after YOUR IRRESPONSIBLE MESS??????"

"K – ken – kenshin.... calm down man......... you're wrecking Kaoru's clothes you know...." and he pointed at the........ thing............. on Kenshin's hands.

"Oh NO! Oh no.... what to do, what to do?" he walked in circles, desperately. But before he ran inside to fix the cloth (somehow), he pointed at Sano, with a very (and I mean VERY) serious expression on his face.

"Do NOT mess with her Sano! I'm warning you!!! That girl is OFF BOUNDS to you!" and he ran off.

"Sheeeeeesh! Whats wrong with him?" He asked himself........ but deciding that Kenshin did have a point about Katsumi 'cleaning up his mess' all night (and far too freaked out to remain at the dojo), Sano decided to go to the Akabeko and thank her for everything and appologysing as well.

A/N: here's the new chapter 5........ ! Please R&R... pleeease o.o? Things will really start to happen on the next chapter ! Hope you like it!


	6. Something Else Behind the Innocence

**Disclaimer:** Once again, Rurouni Kenshin does not belong to me....

A/N: Well...... as usual, tooooo much work to be done.... sooooooo little time........ but I did mannage to update.... nevermind the OOCness (remember.... its a fanfiction..... ) so.... enjoy x

Thanks a lot for your reviews!!! Dianinha, I told you I'd go back to writting.......... took a while but I diiiiiiid!!!! Thanx so much for encouraging me!

Chapter 6 

Indeed, Sano was feeling rather bad for all the trouble he had caused Katsumi. She was up all night, and probably arrived late at work this morning......................... not to mention that she's probably very tired. Oh man, I can't just show up ampty handed......................... he thought to himself as he walked up to the restaurant.

And amazingly enough, he didn't show up empty handed! Using the little money he had gathered from his gambling nights, Sano brought her a nice blue ribon, 'just something to keep her hair off her eyes' he had told her awkwardly.

"This was very thoughtfull of you, Sano. Thanks."

"Well............ I couldn't just ignore what you did............" he said.

"Tell me: wouldn't you have done the same for your friend, Kenshin?" she asked him. He blinked at that but answered straight away.

"Of course I would!"

"Then that's all I need to know." She said, smilling.

The truth is that after that day, Sano and Katsumi had become good friends. He found out that she could be very different from most girls he's known. That is, even though he had seen her as a rather interesting girl at first, now it felt more as if she was just another good friend.............. almost 'one of the guys'.

Surely, she was very quiet, always careful and a bit like Kenshin, but she was really easy going and, unlike the others who made fun of him, Katsumi actually laughed of his jokes and silly comments.

The best part of it was that Kenshin realized that and it actually pleased him that his sister was finnally able to have fun, even though he never really saw her smile like she did the night she gave him his mother's silver chain. Also, it was very clear that they were just friends, which put his mind at ease.........

Kaoru was also quite pleased with the whole situation. With Sano carrying Katsumi up and down, the girl didn't have much time left to spend with Kenshin.

In fact, the only one who wasn't too keen about Katsumi's and Sano's friendship was Tae........ for the simple fact that he was showing up at the Akabeko a lot more, which meant a whole lot of meals left unpaid for.............

The only thing Kenshin did not know, and indeed he would flip if he found out, was that Sano loved it when Katsumi went with him to his gambling nights. She seemed to have a rather good sixth sense and helped him a lot. He found it rather strange though, that for such a petit girl, with a pretty fragile look, (despite the sword she carried around) she seemed to feel almost 'at home' on those places they went........ with men drinking and gambling and cursing loudly. None of it seemed to impress her at all, as if she was used to that kind of environment.

One evening, Kenshin thought he should go check on Katsumi, just to make sure that she wasn't needing anything......... or maybe it was really just to see her, he couldn't really tell. He left the Dojo right after dinner, a time in which the restaurant wasn't closed yet but usually empty.

As he walked into the restaurant, he saw Tsubame collecting plates and Tae cleaning the tables, but no sign of Katsumi. She's probably in the kitchen he thought.

"Good evening Mrs. Tae, Tsubame!" Both of them looked up and greeted Kenshin.

"How's Kaoru and Yahiko?" Tae asked.

"Fine, they're great.......... ummm Mrs Tae, is Katsumi in the kitchen? I'd really like to see her." He asked, trying not to sound awkward.

"Aw, I'm sorry Kenshin. Katsumi left earlier today."

"Is she alright??" he asked, concern written all over his face.

"Oh yes....... Sano came here to pic her up, as usual." She answered as she collected some cups from the last table.

"'as usual'? You mean... he comes here to take her somewhere....... often?" he asked, concern turning into annoyance. He knew exactly where Sano was likely to go every night and that really did not please him.

"Well, yes.... I don't really know where they go, but he comes day in day out.............................................. Kenshin?

Kenshin was long gone, he had stormed out of the restaurant before Tae had even finnished her frase. He couldn't believe it. The image of drunken men, stumbling over his little sister and checking her out, and her listening to their outrageous language was intoxicating his mind! How could you Sano!!! She's a child for crying out loud! Or so he thought she was.... either way, that was the last straw!

Bingo! There they were. Sano looked up and saw the expression on Kenshin's face, he knew he was in trouble. Still, the fact that Kenshin's nature was peacefull guaranteed Sano that at least he wouldn't KILL him. But he had to admit he had never really seen his friend like that...

Kenshin stomped inside and took Sano by his Jacket's colar, dragging him outside, looking rather out of control. Katsumi was slightly alarmed by that and followed them outside, stumbling over broken glasses and bottles.

Kenshin pushed Sano against the wall of a nearby restaurant, still holding on to him.

"WHAT ON EARTH IS WRONG WITH YOU!! ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND???" he screamed.

"Woah! Pall... what's wrong with me??? Have you looked in the mirror?" Sano asked nervously.

"YOU BRING A SIXTEEN YEAR OLD GIRL TO A PLACE LIKE THIS??? WITH MEN LIKE THIS??? AND GAMBLING! AND DRINKING???"

But as Sano was being yelled at, Katsumi seemed to be concentrated on something else: she was watching a man with a black hood, sitting right outside the restaurant where all the action was taking place. She wasn't looking straight at him, making sure that he didn't realize that she had seen him. She seemed tottaly oblivious to Kenshin and Sano.

"Dude, relaaax! She wasn't even drinking! We were just having a good time! Its bad enough to be stuck on the Akabeko the whole day!" came Sano's voice.

"IT – MAKES – NO – DIFFERENCE!!! THIS IS NOT A PLACE FOR A WOMAN! LET ALONE A YOUNG GIRL SUCH AS HERSELF!!!" yelled Kenshin.

"Since when is she your responsability, Kenshin? You're acting very strange buddy..." he said, in a small voice, for his own sake.

At that, the black hooded man made a sudden movement, enough to trigger Katsumi's 'attack'. In one quick, swift movement, she had thrown aside all of the benches and chairs out of the way with her sword, pushed people asside and had the man on the grownd, her foot on his chest and the tip of her sword an inch from his neck.

All of that activity drew Kenshin's and Sano's attaintion to her. Both of them staring, not only because of her speed and sudden burst of violence towards the man, but because her's was a japanese sword, an assassin's sword...............................

Sano walked up to her slowly and cautiously, touching her arm and pulling it slightly.

"Come on Kitty, come with me..." he said in almost a wisper. But Katsumi turned her gaze briskly at him, causing him to let go of her almost immediately. Her eyes, not a different colour like Kenshin's usually go, but so fierce and penetrating that it felt as if it sent a bolt of electricity right throwgh his brain. He saw hate, anger... and, if he wasn't mistaken, a slight fear in them.

Katsumi turned back to the man, bending down, increasing the pressure on the man's chest, her sword firmly in place.

"Where are the rest of them? WHERE ARE THEY!!!" she asked him, over and over again, but the man wouldn't speak, he'd stutter and stumble on his words, but nothing would come out.

A moment later, they heard the police comming their way. Kenshin pushed her sword away from the man with his own, gently, and shook his head at her as she stared up at him.

"Don't let the police catch you here like this... with that." He said, refferring to her sword. Katsumi sheathed her sword and closed her eyes, her head hanging down. She turned on her heels and began to walk away. Kenshin and Sano followed behind her, all of them in silence.

When they were within a good distance from where it had all happened, they stopped and Kenshin turned to Katsumi, his eyes full of concern.

"Maybe I should hold on to that for a while..." he said as he reached for her sword. She stepped back, out of his reach.

"I don't think so." She said, looking straight into his eyes.

"Katsumi... thats a very dangerous sword you have... its a deadly weapon, and against the law to be carried around..." he pointed out, very carefully.

Katsumi looked down at it and smiled vaguely and looked back up at him. "Kenshin, this blade never touches anyone." She said. Kenshin sighed, looking at her.

"I believe you, and aproove of such attitude... but what happened back there prooves that you are skilled with a sword... and I wouldn't be surprised if, in a desperate situation, your use of that weapon took someone's life..." he said, rememberring his own experience with Tomoe. The pain of the memory could be heard in his voice.

Katsumi, looking back at him, tightened her grip on the sheath of her sword, looking slightly annoyed at his words.

"This blade is destined for one person only, and I shall die before it touches anyone else." She said through clenched teeth. "And don't you dare go there Kenshin, it is not your place... what right do you have to 'aproove' anything from me? I am not yours to keep." And at that, she turned around and walked away.

Kenshin and Sano, lost on her last words, could do nothing else but watch her go........... in silence.

A/N: there you go..... pleeeease be nice and leave a review ;; thank you


	7. I wont just let you walk away

**Disclaimer:** Rurouni Kenshin is not mine................... is this really necessary? ¬ ¬

A/N: A little sentimental chappie........... kind of any way.

Thanx for the reviews..... (both of them . pfffffffffff) but really, i truelly appreciate them ) so thanx a lot! On to the Chapter!

**Chapter 7:**

Kenshin and Sano watched Katsumi walk away untill she vanished in the distance. Kenshin felt as if he had just recieved a punch on the stomach, and he knew that Sano felt something of the sort too.

After a long, awkward silence, Sano cleared his throat:

"Ahhhem............... what just happened here??? Did I miss something.............? Cause that was NOT the Katsumi I know."

Kenshin was still quiet, as usual lost in his thoughts.......... Sano realised that funny remarks wouldn't help here. So he fell quiet again but his silence was broken by Kenshin finnally speaking.

"Sano, did you see the look in her eyes?" he asked in a rather quiet voice.

"I did, it was like she turned into a tottally different person for a moment. Actually, it reminded me of you when you're.......................... (and here he was really carefull not to mention the word Battousai) engaged in a battle" He said, scratching his head.

The thought did seem to hit Kenshin strongly, but it didn't seem to be the number one concern in his mind.

"I................. I did see that................"

"And, Katsumi's so calm........................ she's one of the most generous people I've met, I just can't understand such a violent outburst like that......................" Sano went on.

"No, that's not hard to understand............................ a sudden rush of adrenalin, the feeling of threat............... fear........................... any of those is enough to trigger such a reaction; even on the most serene person." At that, Sano realised that Kenshin was reffering to himself.

"There's something else you cought up on what just happened back there, isn't there Kenshin?" Sano asked.

"When she attacked that man, there was something else to her.................... in her eyes..................... it wasn't only hate, or anger...................... I saw fear, Sano. She was genuinely affraid of something and it wasn't that man alone. There's something bigger behind this."

"Looks like our friend is in serious need of some help..............."

In the Akabeko, the next morning...................:

" "I approove of such attitude" he says............... who does he think he IS???" she kept mumbling to herself as she scrubbed the same plate over and over again. "Acting like the older brother he should have been years ago!!!! Hmpf! And threatenning to take my sword! MY sword! MYYYY sword!!!!!!!!!!!!! AAARgh the nerve!!!!"

"Katsumi.......................?" came Tsubame's little voice from behind her.

"HE'S always walking around with HIS sword! True, mine is not a reversed blade, but its not like I'm gonna go around the city cutting people's throats!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Ka........ Katsumi..........? Please, Katsumi?" Tsubame insisted.

"DANGEROUS???? The sword is 'dangerous'????????? As if I couldn't handle a sword!!!"

"KATSUMI! What are you doing???????????" Tae suddenly burst into the kitchen.

"..................Huh?" Katsumi looked down, into the sink. She had been scrubbing Tsubame's hands for the last ten minutes........ and not lightly.

"Oh MY!!!!!!! Aw.............. Tsubame, I'm so sorry! Soooooooooo sososososo sorry! Here." She gently wrapped her hands on a towel, and appologised over and over.

"Its............ its ok Katsumi..................... really............... don't worry." She said, trying to calm her down.

"Why don't you take this day off Katsumi? You look a bit troubled....................... is something wrong?" asked Tae, in a very concerned voice.

"No.... no. Nothing's the matter. I really don't need the day off Mrs. Tae, I just drifted off, I'm sorry............"

And at that, she went back to work, trying not to think of last evening's events.

In the Dojo:

Kenshin sighed as he sat down on the front porch. Indeed............. it was way too good to be true........... and he looked up as Sano walked in, as usual.

Katsumi hadn't come to see him in almost a week, and she hadn't talked to Sano either. She was doing all she could to avoid them and that was driving Kenshin mad.

"Hi Sano." He greeted his gangster friend.

"Hey, what's with you buddy?"

"Just worried. You know..................... its obvious that Katsumi's in trouble, but she just won't see me."

"I know, she's been avoiding me too. But explain me one thing, Kenshin..................... I know you have a thing for helping people, but why are you soooooo envolved with this particular girl?"

Kenshin let his head hang down, letting his bangs cover up his eyes.

"She's very young Sano, and on her own............... she needs us, thats all."

"So the wise man says." Said Sano.

"So, why do you think she's been avoiding us?"

"Sorry buddy, but isn't it obvious? I understand your concern for the girl, but I think you crossed the line when you mentioned the danger her sword represented. You lost her trust..."

"Howcome? Being concerned about her shouldn't cost her trust... in fact, it should have shown her that she can... and SHOULD... trust me..." Kenshin insisted.

Sano sighed and went on, " That should be, but look at it this way: you rely on your sword for your own protection and of those around you, right?"

Kenshin nodded, looking down at his own.

"So, we saw Katsumi is skilled, which means she must rely on HER sword for her very servival... and in addition to that, she is lonely... or 'alone'... that sword is all she's got..."

"And I threatened to take it..." said Keshin, more to himself than to Sano, in sudden realisation.

"I have to talk to her.................. I need to understand whats going on. Who she meant with "they", and why are people after her................"

At that, he jumped to his feet and walked over to the gates of the dojo, Sano called out for him, telling him to wait up. But he said he wanted to do this alone, he had to. Not quite understanding why, Sano knew that he should respect his friend's feelings and decided to stay put.

Kenshin ran all the way to the Akabeko. He was feeling a sense of urgency that he just couldn't explain............ but something told him that he wouldn't have another opportunity to make things right with his sister again.

As he got there, Kenshin decided to enter through the back door of the restaurant, straight into the kitchen so that he wouldn't have to give any explanations to Tae and, to make things easier, Katsumi wouldn't be able to give a lame excuse as to why she wouldn't be able to see him.

He stood at the door, in silence. Katsumi had her back to the door, she was sweeping the floor and froze the moment Kenshin appeared at the door. She didn't see him, but considerring her skills in swordfighting, Kenshin knew that she could feel his presence. She hesitated for a while but finnally spoke:

"Why are you here?"

There was, obviously, no joy in her words, but Kenshin heard no anger or resentment in them either.

"I thought we should talk, Katsumi. I have lots of things to say and also questions I need to hear the answers, things I really need to know. Please, Katsumi."

She turned to face him and looked deep into his eyes, he did the same. None of them darring to look away. Katsumi sighed and agreed to talk. Not in the restaurant though; they left and walked in silence to the side of a river, where they sat down on the grass.

"I wanted to appologize, before anything else, Katsumi. Appologize for not understanding your affection for the sword you carry with you. You were right, it was not my place and I shouldn't have asked to take it from you. I hope you'll find it in you not to hold any resentments towards me." Kenshin started out.

Katsumi, who had been staring at her feet, looked up at him, her expression hard but not angry.

"I have to be honest Kenshin, indeed you annoyed me a lot when you threatened to take my sword. But, after this past week, I thought about it quite a bit and finnally understood. You were worried about me.................. thats all."

"Thanks for understanding." He said, his rurouni smile back on his face – one thing Katsumi couldn't resist and it had the power to make her smile herself.

"But there's something else.........." he went on. " I couldn't help noticing you're in trouble, Katsumi. Something happened that evening, something about that man that scared you. Please, let me help you............. tell me whats going on?"

"Oh............... Kenshin. I was affraid you were going to get into that." She said, and turned her face away. "I see you are worried, but I beg you............. please............... do not get involved in this."

"But I'm already involved............. deeply involved. I wont let you handle this on your own. I finnally have the opportunity to be there for you, how could I ever walk away?"

He knew that what he had just said had had a strong impact on her. He knew that she was now certain that he was aware of who she really was. She was staring at him in utter surprize.

"I can't................... I can't let you get involved..............." and now her voice was week, her eyes were shut and she wanted to get away, but Kenshin grabbed one of her hands and pulled her towerds him, trying to hold her and hug her. Despite her useless attempts to get away since she was weakenned by the whole situation, Kenshin held her tighlty in his arms, making it clear to her that he was going to be there for her, no matter what.

"No......... Kenshin......... you don't understand............. I have to leave, I........... I cannot stay............... I destroy people's lives................. I dont want to wreck what you took so long to find............... please............"

"What do you mean leave? I won't let you go. You are part of what you think took me so long to find. I wont let anything happen to you or anyone else. Just let me know what's going on."

Katsumi pushed him away gently, he could see the tears she was fighting so hard to hold back. She stood up and looked at him, a vague smile on her lips, a sad smile.

"I can't tell you any more........... I don't want to, please do not insist, Kenshin. I know you care about me............ But I also care, far too much, to let you in on this mess..........."

And with that she left. Kenshin knew better then to insist anymore at that moment............ But he was far from giving up. He was going to find out exactly what was after his sister and why.

A/U: there you go! Pleeeeeeeeeeeease please please leave ur review ................. the author needs a little more motivatiooon (


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